The ’Glass Menagerie - March 2013

This month's top Reader's Rides

Gold-Winning Red Vettes

This is a dream come true for both of us. I fell for the C3 in the ’70s but never could afford to buy one. Now I have this numbers-matching ’74 C3 with power steering, brakes, and windows; an automatic trans; A/C; plus a new interior and 1974 South Carolina license plates. Everything works, including the clock. It’s won First Place many times in local and out-of-state car shows.

Jackie’s ’07 Z51 C6 is a very distinctive Vette. After being built, it was displayed at the National Corvette Museum. It’s painted Monterey Red (very close to the ’74’s color) and bears many autographs. The engine bay was signed by Corvette Racing drivers, the Bowling Green Assembly Plant manager, and Corvette’s head engineer. In back, it was signed by Michelin Tires’ head engineer, as well as Ron Fellows and the drivers from the Petit LeMans race.

Custom touches include LED lighting inside and out, and chrome fasteners throughout.

Jackie’s very proud of her C6, which has also won First Place many times in local and regional car shows.

Yvette

Who: Tom and Sue Ciura Where: Lancaster, NY What: ’01 C5 coupe

I was recovering from surgery a couple winters ago. Our snow-blower had broken down, so my wife, Sue, was removing snow via the “Armstrong” method.

5/10

I went out to find a new snow-blower. That didn’t work out, but I had a phone number for a Pewter Corvette that I had found online. It was a six-speed car with only 21,000 miles on it, and it was located just a few miles away.

It was a beautiful, well-kept car, but I couldn’t testdrive it because of the snow and salt on the roads. Still, I knew if I didn’t buy it on the spot, the next guy would.

When I got home, Sue asked me if I’d found her a new snow-blower. “Well, uh, no,” I replied, “but I found this great Corvette!”

The marriage endured, I lived to tell the story, and Sue loves “Yvette,” as she has named the car. We go to a lot of cruise nights and rides just for fun.

TwoBlue

I’ve read VETTE for years, look forward every month to its arrival, and have wanted to present my cars for “The ’Glass Menagerie” for a long time. These are my third and fourth Corvettes.

One is an Admiral Blue ’94 ZR-1 (number 10 of 448 built). I’m its third owner and have had it since 2007, when I found it in Portland, Oregon, and drove it home. It has a Corsa exhaust, a K&N air filter, and a Hurst shifter. I also gave the LT5 a paint-matching “facelift.” It dyno’d at 387 rear-wheel hp and 382 lb-ft of rear-wheel torque.

6/10

The other is a Nassau Blue six-speed ’00 coupe, one of 821 built in that color. It has a Bassani exhaust, a Hurst shifter, and a West Coast Corvette Stage III kit on the engine. Inside, I’ve added a custom Pioneer stereo with a navigation screen, Sirius/XM satellite radio, an SD card, and Bluetooth/iPod capability. It’s great for long drives.

7/10

My best round-trip fuel mileage with it was 34 mpg, when we visited the National Corvette Museum for its 15th anniversary.

Next year for my 60th birthday, I’ll be adding a blue Z06!

Suncoast Show Vette

Who: John Edwards
Where: Naples, FL
What: ’06 C6 Z06

While I live where it’s always “Corvette weather,” I only drive my Z06 to shows and cruise-ins when it’s not raining. It’s exclusively a show car and will never see a track, despite having 600 hp.

I’m the car’s second owner, having purchased it from a Ferrari dealer here in Naples. It currently has 16,000 miles on it, and many, many upgrades.

Italian-leather seat skins from leatherseats.com grace the Victory Red/Ebony interior, while chrome and polished stainless accessories from American Car Craft dress up the engine bay.

Going The Distance

Who: Terrell Puckett Where: Fairfield, CA
What: ’00 C5 coupe

My ’00 Corvette coupe has 190,000 miles on the odometer, and it still gets mid 20s (mpg) on the highway. In addition, it cranks out 600 hp at the wheels, thanks to a Vortech supercharger running 7 pounds of boost. The car also has ported LS6 heads, a FAST 90mm intake, ARH headers, and a TR224 camshaft. Exterior-wise, it wears a carbon-fiber hood (with a 4-inch reverse scoop), plus a Tiger Shark nose and fiberglass rear spoiler.

Is your vette menagerie material? Just send a photo (or photos) of the car, a brief description, and whatever else you’d like to VETTE Magazine, c/o ’Glass Menagerie, 9036 Brittany Way, Tampa, FL 33619. You can also email the information to vette@sorc.com with “Glass” in the subject line. So what are you waiting for?

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